Podcast appearances and mentions of sahil lavingia

What was it like to work inside Elon Musk's DOGE? The cost-cutting initiative promised transparency, but most of its actions have been shrouded in secrecy.For months, there were reports of software engineers and Trump loyalists entering agencies and accessing sensitive data. DOGE also helped the Trump administration lay off thousands of government workers. NPR reporters have been trying for months to get anyone from DOGE to talk on the record. Now, Sahil Lavingia, a former DOGE staffer assigned to the Department of Veteran Affairs, is speaking. Today, what drew Sahil to DOGE and what he learned about the inner workings, in a way we've never heard before.For more on DOGE and the federal workforce: - The last time we shrank the federal workforce - Can... we still trust the monthly jobs report? - Can the Federal Reserve stay independent?This episode was hosted by Kenny Malone and Bobby Allyn. It was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler and Emma Peaslee. It was edited by Jess Jiang and fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. It was engineered by Neal Rauch. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.Listen free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the NPR app or anywhere you get podcasts.Help support Planet Money and hear our bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In the midst of the terrible Trump tax bill moving through Congress, Ralph invites Sarah Anderson who directs the Global Economy Project at the Institute for Policy Studies to discuss the massive tax loopholes huge companies like Amazon get that allow them to pay far less in taxes than ordinary working people. Then, Greg LeRoy from Good Jobs First joins us to discuss how state taxpayers are footing the bill for these massive data centers companies like Google are building all over the country. Plus, Ralph has some choice words for passive unions and responds to listener feedback about our guest last week, Nadav Wieman.Sarah Anderson directs the Global Economy Project at the Institute for Policy Studies and is a co-editor of the IPS website Inequality.org. Her research covers a wide range of international and domestic economic issues, including inequality, CEO pay, taxes, labor, and Wall Street reform.They're (Congress is) planning to give huge new tax giveaways to large corporations like Amazon and wealthy people like Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. And partially paying for those tax cuts for the wealthy by slashing programs that mean so much to so many Americans like Medicaid and food assistance.”Sarah AndersonWe're not going to have a healthy, thriving society and economy as long as we have the extreme levels of inequality that we have today.Sarah AndersonDubbed “the leading national watchdog of state and local economic development subsidies,” “an encyclopedia of information regarding subsidies,” “God's witness to corporate welfare,” and “the OG of ensuring that state and local tax policy actually supports good jobs, sustainability, and equity,”* Greg founded Good Jobs First in 1998 upon winning the Public Interest Pioneer Award. He has trained and consulted for state and local governments, associations of public officials, labor-management committees, unions, community groups, tax and budget watchdogs, environmentalists, and smart growth advocates more than 30 years.Public education and public health are the two biggest losers in every state giving away money to data centers right now.Greg Le RoyWe know of no other form of state spending that is so out of control. Therefore, we recommend that states cancel their data center tax exemptions. Such subsidies are absolutely unnecessary for an extremely profitable industry dominated by some of the most valuable corporations on earth such as Amazon, Microsoft, Apple, Facebook, and Google.Good Jobs First report: “Cloudy With a Loss of Spending Control”They've (Congress has) known for years that the ordinary worker pays a higher tax rate than these loophole-ridden corporations.Ralph NaderIn my message to Trump, I ask him, "Why is he afraid of Netanyahu? And doesn't he want to come to the rescue of these innocent babies by saying, ‘Mr. Netanyahu, the taxpayers in this country are paying for thousands of trucks stalled at the border of Gaza full of medicine, food, water, electricity, fuel, and other critical necessities? We're going to put a little American flag on each one of these trucks, and don't you dare block them.'”…No answer.Ralph NaderNews 5/23/251. It seems as though the dam in Israeli politics against acknowledging the horrors in Gaza is beginning to break. In an interview with the BBC this week, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert stated that what Israel "is currently doing in Gaza is very close to a war crime. Thousands of innocent Palestinians are being killed.” He went on to say, “the war has no objective and has no chance of achieving anything that could save the lives of the hostages.” These quotes come from the Jerusalem Post. And on May 21st, Haaretz reported that opposition party leader Yair Golan warned that Israel could become a “pariah state, like South Africa once was,” based on its actions in Gaza. Speaking a truth that American politicians appear incapable of articulating, he added, a “sane state does not wage war against civilians, does not kill babies as a hobby, and does not set goals for itself like the expulsion of a population.”2. Confirming this prognosis, the Cradle reports “The Israeli military has admitted that more than 80 percent of the people killed in the attacks on Gaza since Israel breached the ceasefire two months ago are…civilians.” This fact was confirmed by the IDF in response to a request from Hebrew magazine Hamakom, wherein “the military's spokesperson stated that 500 of the 2,780 killed in the Gaza Strip as of Tuesday are ‘terrorists.'” Leaving the remaining 2,280 people killed classified as “not suspected terrorists.” The Cradle compares this ratio, approximately 4.5 civilians killed for every combatant, to the Russia-Ukraine war – a ratio of approximate 2.8 to one. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has “claimed that the ratio is just one civilian killed for each combatant killed.” At the same time, AP reports that while Israel has allowed a minimum of humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, under immense international pressure, “none of that aid actually reached Palestinians,” according to the United Nations spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric. The renewed offensive coupled with the barring of humanitarian aid has raised the alarm about mass starvation in Gaza.3. Developments on the ground in Gaza have triggered a new wave of international outcry. On May 19th, leaders of the United Kingdom, France and Canada issued a joint statement, reading in part, “We strongly oppose the expansion of Israel's military operations in Gaza. The level of human suffering in Gaza is intolerable… The Israeli Government's denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable and risks breaching International Humanitarian Law…We will not stand by while the Netanyahu Government pursues these egregious actions. If Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response.” The Parliament of Spain meanwhile, “passed a non-binding motion calling on the government to impose an arms embargo on Israel,” per Anadolu Ajansı. This potential ban, supported by all parties except the conservative People's Party and the far-right Vox, would “ban the exports of any material that could strengthen the Israeli military, including helmets, vests, and fuel with potential military use.” Left-wing parties in Spain are now pushing for an emergency session to impose a binding decree to this effect.4. The United States however seems to be moving backwards. Drop Site news reports Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff made a deal with Hamas ensuring that, “the Trump administration would compel Israel to lift the Gaza blockade and allow humanitarian aid to enter the territory…[and] make a public call for an immediate ceasefire,” in exchange for the release of Edan Alexander. Of course, once Alexander was released Trump reneged completely. Basem Naim, a member of Hamas's political bureau, told Drop Site, “He did nothing of this…They didn't violate the deal. They threw it in the trash.” Besides prolonging further the charnel house in Gaza, this duplicity undermines American credibility in the region, particularly with Iran at a time when Trump is seeking a new deal to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.5. Democrats in Congress are inching towards action as well. On May 13th, Senator Peter Welch introduced Senate Resolution 224, calling for “the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid to address the needs of civilians in Gaza.” Along with Welch, 45 Democrats and Independents signed on to this resolution, that is the entire Democratic caucus except for John Fetterman. On May 14th, Rashida Tlaib introduced House Resolution 409, commemorating the Nakba and calling on Congress to “reinstate support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which provides life-saving humanitarian assistance to Palestinians.” This was cosponsored by AOC and Reps. Carson, Lee, Omar, Pressley, Ramirez, Simon, and Coleman. And, on May 21st, a group of eight senators – Welch, Sanders, Kaine, Merkley, Murray, Van Hollen, Schatz, and Warnock – sent a letter urging Secretary of State Rubio to reopen the investigation into the death of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu-Akleh, per Prem Thakker. The Biden administration ruled the death “unintentional,” but a new documentary by Zeteo News reveals a “Biden cover-up.”6. More action is occurring on college campuses as well, as students go into graduation season. At NYU, a student named Logan Rozos said in his graduation speech, “As I search my heart today in addressing you all…the only thing that is appropriate to say in this time and to a group this large is a recognition of the atrocities currently happening in Palestine,” per CNN. NYU announced that they are now withholding his diploma. At George Washington University, the Guardian reports student Cecilia Culver said in her graduation speech, “I am ashamed to know my tuition [fee] is being used to fund…genocide…I call upon the class of 2025 to withhold donations and continue advocating for disclosure and divestment.” GWU issued a statement declaring Culver “has been barred from all GW's campuses and sponsored events elsewhere.” The moral clarity of these students is remarkable, given the increasingly harsh measures these schools have taken to silence those who speak up.7. Moving on, several major stories about the failing DOGE initiative have surfaced in recent days. First, Social Security. Listeners may recall that a DOGE engineer said “40% of phone calls made to [the Social Security Administration] to change direct deposit information come from fraudsters.” Yet, a new report by NextGov.com found that since DOGE mandated the SSA install new anti-fraud checks on claims made over the phone, “only two claims out of over 110,000 were found to likely be fraudulent,” or 0.0018%. What the policy has done however, is slow down payments. According to this piece, retirement claim processing is down 25%. Meanwhile, at the VA, DOGE engineer Sahil Lavingia, “found…a machine that largely functions, though it doesn't make decisions as fast as a startup might.” Lavingia added “honestly, it's kind of fine—because the government works. It's not as inefficient as I was expecting, to be honest. I was hoping for more easy wins.” This from Fast Company. Finally, CBS reports, “leaders of the United States Institute for Peace regained control of their offices Wednesday…after they were ejected from their positions by the Trump administration and [DOGE] in March.” This piece explains that On February 19th, President Trump issued Executive Order 14217 declaring USIP "unnecessary" and terminating its leadership, most of its 300 staff members, its entire board, installing a DOGE functionary at the top and transferring ownership of the building to the federal government. This set off a court battle that ended Monday, when U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell ruled that the takeover was “unlawful” and therefore “null and void.” These DOGE setbacks might help explain Elon Musk's reported retreat from the political spotlight and political spending.8. On May 21st, Congressman Gerry Connolly passed away, following his battle with esophageal cancer. Connolly's death however is just the latest in a disturbing trend – Ken Klippenstein reports, “Connolly joins five other members of Congress who also died in office over the past 13 months…Rep. Raúl Grijalva…Rep. Sylvester Turner…Rep. Bill Pascrell…Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee…[and] Rep. Donald Payne Jr.” All of these representatives were Democrats and their deaths have chipped away at the close margin between Democrats and Republicans in the House – allowing the Republicans to pass Trump's “Big Beautiful Bill” by a single vote. Connolly himself prevailed over AOC in a much-publicized intra-party battle for the Ranking Member seat on the House Oversight committee. It speaks volumes that Connolly was only able to hold onto that seat for a few short months before becoming too sick to stay on. This is of course part and parcel with the recent revelations about Biden's declining mental acuity during his presidency and the efforts to oust David Hogg from the DNC for backing primaries against what he calls “asleep-at-the-wheel” Democrats.9. Speaking of “asleep-at-the-wheel” Democrats, Bloomberg Government reports Senator John Fetterman “didn't attend a single committee hearing in 2025 until…May 8, about a week after an explosive New York Magazine story raised questions about his mental health and dedication to his job.” Fetterman, who represents Pennsylvania on the Commerce, Agriculture, and Homeland Security committees skipped the confirmation hearings for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Budget Director Russ Vought, some of the most high-profile and controversial Trump appointments. Fetterman still has yet to attend a single Agriculture committee hearing in 2025.10. Finally, in more Pennsylvania news, the state held its Democratic primaries this week, yielding mixed results. In Pittsburgh, progressives suffered a setback with the ouster of Mayor Ed Gainey – the first Black mayor of the city. Gainey lost to Allegheny County Controller Corey O'Connor, the son of former Mayor Bob O'Connor, the Hill reports. In Philadelphia however, voters approved three ballot measures – including expanding affordable housing and adding more oversight to the prison system – and reelected for a third term progressive reform District Attorney Larry Krasner, per AP. Krasner has long been a target of conservatives in both parties, but has adroitly maneuvered to maintain his position – and dramatically reduced homicide rates in Philly. The Wall Street Journal reports Philadelphia homicides declined by 34% between 2023 and 2024, part of substantial decline in urban homicides nationwide. Kudos to Krasner.This has been Francesco DeSantis, with In Case You Haven't Heard. Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Join me as I chat with Andrew Wilkinson, Co-Founder of Tiny, as we discuss investment and startup ideas in the current AI landscape. We explore how AI is simultaneously lowering barriers to entry while increasing competition, making it easier to build "million-dollar businesses" but harder to create sustainable long-term ventures. We share specific startup ideas leveraging AI, including secure data integration platforms, automated web design services, and AI-powered lending.Timestamps:00:00 - Intro01:25 - Business building in AI08:13 - Media Business Opportunities and AI 18:18 - The future of GPT wrappers21:20 - Automation and AI tools we use29:14 - Startup Idea 1: MCP and Financial Analysis34:49 - Startup Idea 2: AI Web Design Agency 37:06 - Startup Idea 3: Message Maxing43:43 - Startup Idea 4:  AI-Based Lending Solutions49:43 - Andrew's Stealth Startup Key Points• AI is making it easier to build businesses but harder to maintain competitive advantages as tools become widely accessible• Distribution, data advantages, and network effects are becoming the primary moats in the AI era• Media businesses with high-value niches present opportunities for entrepreneurs to build audiences before layering AI tools• Secure AI applications (particularly around financial data and personal communications) represent potential sustainable business models1) The AI Paradox: It's never been EASIER to build a $1M business, but never HARDER to build sustainable value.Why? Because anyone can "vibe code" your product in a weekend.Distribution and network effects are the new moats. Tools alone won't cut it anymore.2) Where are the ACTUAL opportunities?Andrew & Greg agree: Buy or build MEDIA businesses first, then layer AI on top.• Focus on High-value niches not mass audiences• Build community BEFORE tools• Example: Buy TechCrunch or event series like South by Southwest3) AI tools they're actually using RIGHT NOW:• Gumloop - For sales lead intelligence• Lindy - Email processing & calendar management• Manus AI - For candidate screening (saved Andrew hours!)• Vercel V0 - Rebuilt Andrew's pressure washing website in 30 SECONDS4) Startup Idea 1: "Secure MCP"Model Context Protocol (MCP) lets LLMs access your data securely.Andrew built a custom system to analyze his company finances across multiple businesses.Opportunity: Build the "1Password of MCP" - where security is the selling point.5) Startup Idea 2: "Message Maxing"An app that analyzes your text messages to identify:• Which friends exhibit toxic traits• How YOU come across in messages• Who you're neglectingPerfect for viral TikTok marketing. Could be the next CalAI!6) Startup Idea 3: AI-powered web design agency• Use V0 to auto-redesign ugly local business websites• Reach out with "I already built you a better site"• Charge $500 + $20/mo hosting• Scale with automationLow-hanging fruit for your first million!7) Startup Idea 4: "Bank of Vibe Coding"AI-powered lending platform for vibe coders:• Quick approval for developers with traction• Take % of profits instead of interest• Criteria: X followers, Stripe integration, etc.Sahil Lavingia's $100K offer proves demand!8) The BIG question: Are these Cal AI businesses (make $1M then die) or sustainable?Andrew's take: "Almost all these businesses will be zeros in 5 years."Greg's counter: "It's so hard to predict even 5 months from now!"What do YOU think? Are you building for the short or long term?The MOST VALUABLE insight: The businesses that are easiest to start are often the worst businesses to be in long-term.But that doesn't mean you shouldn't start one! Making your first million with a "Cal AI business" is still a win.Notable Quotes:"It's never been easier to build a million dollar business and it's never been easier to lose all your equity value." - Andrew"Distribution is the new moat, anyone could create anything." - GregLCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/BoringAds — ads agency that will build you profitable ad campaigns http://boringads.com/BoringMarketing — SEO agency and tools to get your organic customers http://boringmarketing.com/Startup Empire — a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.startupempire.coFIND ME ON SOCIALX/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenbergInstagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/FIND ANDREW ON SOCIALX/Twitter: https://x.com/awilkinsonNever Enough: https://www.neverenough.comTiny: https://www.tiny.com

Nghe trọn sách nói Ngựa Lùn Giữa Đàn Kỳ Lân trên ứng dụng Fonos: https://fonos.link/podcast-tvsn --Về Fonos:Fonos là Ứng dụng âm thanh số - Với hơn 13.000 nội dung gồm Sách nói có bản quyền, PodCourse, Podcast, Ebook, Tóm tắt sách, Thiền định, Truyện ngủ, Nhạc chủ đề, Truyện thiếu nhi. Bạn có thể nghe miễn phí chương 1 của tất cả sách nói trên Fonos. Tải app để trải nghiệm ngay!--Khởi nghiệp tối giản là một xu hướng khởi nghiệp mới đang ngày càng được nhiều người quan tâm. Hầu hết những nhà khởi nghiệp đều được truyền cảm hứng bởi câu chuyện của những "con kỳ lân" như Airbnb, Uber hay Stripe. Ưu tiên của họ là thu hút thật nhiều vốn đầu tư và tăng trưởng quy mô công ty lên bằng mọi giá. Họ nhắm đến danh xưng "doanh nghiệp tỷ đô" và mơ ước về Thung lũng Silicon.Thế nên với họ, một doanh nghiệp thu về lợi nhuận và phát triển ổn định không được coi là một doanh nghiệp thành công.Tuy nhiên, cuốn sách Ngựa Lùn Giữa Đàn Kỳ Lân của tác giả Sahil Lavingia đề cập đến một xu hướng khởi nghiệp mới, đó là khởi nghiệp tối giản. Nó vẽ ra một chân dung khác về người khởi nghiệp trong thời đại này: đó là người sẽ phát triển sáng phẩm sáng tạo của mình trước khi nghĩ đến việc thành lập công ty, là người ưu tiên doanh thu của công ty hơn là sự tăng trưởng vượt bậc của nó. Nói cách khác, đó là người biết tối ưu hóa mọi nguồn lực, và chỉ mở rộng quy mô khi bản thân công ty đã thật sự sẵn sàng. Một doanh nghiệp tối giản không có nghĩa là bạn sẽ về nhì trong cuộc đua thương trường. Thay vào đó, bạn sẽ tạo ra các công ty bền vững có khả năng linh hoạt chấp nhận rủi ro để phục vụ lợi ích lớn hơn, đồng thời trao quyền cho những người khác làm điều tương tự. Bạn sẽ bắt gặp trong cuốn sách này câu chuyện của chính tác giả cũng như của nhiều doanh nghiệp với tiềm năng phát triển cực kỳ cao đang tập trung giải quyết các vấn đề thực sự thông qua các sản phẩm, dịch vụ và các ứng dụng hữu ích được công chúng đón nhận; đồng thời vẫn mang về lợi nhuận đủ để nuôi sống công ty. Họ chính là những ví dụ cụ thể cho xu hướng khởi nghiệp tối giản, là những con Ngựa lùn giữa đàn kỳ lân.--Tìm hiểu thêm về Fonos: https://fonos.vn/Theo dõi Facebook Fonos: https://www.facebook.com/fonosvietnam/

The story of the digital content-sharing platform Gumroad challenges every aspect of the received wisdom about building successful companies. After it almost went under, founder and CEO Sahil Lavingia decided to pare down to the essentials rather than walk away. Then he took his characteristic counter-intuitiveness further and left Silicon Valley for Provo, Utah. Through it all, he never lost sight of what he was trying to do and his joy in building products. Gumroad is now thriving, with $175 million in volume last year, all thanks to Lavingia's willingness to take a different path to success. Among the many things he's learned along the way are the value of getting a fresh perspective and the virtue of patience – even when it's unexciting. Commitment is often overlooked in heady times, but as he told me, “A lot of people are so concerned about catching the next train because it's the last one. They think it's over. But there are many more trains – just make sure you're at the train station. That's the important thing.” He had a lot to say about this, as well as Gumroad's unique equity and dividend model, which it's now sharing with other companies.   Other topics we touched on include: His long history of taking unconventional paths How he broke into the startup ecosystem Why building more than one product at a time is better than building a single perfect product How to get into the wild world of AI startups Making difficult business decisions for survival Appreciating the opportunity to continue doing what you love The power of equity and incentivizing for the future And so much more — Brought to you by: Vanta – Automate compliance, manage risk, and prove trust—continuously. Get $1,000 off. Runway – The finance platform you don't hate. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Learn more⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. — Where to find Sahil Lavingia: • Sahil's site: https://sahillavingia.com/  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sahillavingia  • Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/shl.bsky.social  • X: https://x.com/shl • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shlpaints/?hl=en Where to find Eric: • Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://ericries.carrd.co/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  • Podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://ericriesshow.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  • YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@theericriesshow⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  — In This Episode We Cover: (03:15) Singapore and America as the ultimate high-growth startups (04:50) How Sahil first encountered entrepreneurship as a teen graphic designer (07:15) The new meaning of “knowledge work”  (11:10) Sahil's impressions of American possibility after growing up in Singapore and returning (16:33) Sahil's history of deviating from the expected path (19:27) Gumroad's path from a failed funding round in 2015 to profitability in 2023 (24:17) How Sahil broke into the startup ecosystem and his first iPhone app  (27:41) Sahil's advice for people looking to break into the new rising tide of AI (30:38) On not putting all your eggs in one product basket (32:59) How and why he left Pinterest (34:48) Surfing and treading water as business cycles (41:36) Overnight successes that are really a long time in the making (45:59) How Sahil started Gumroad (49:19) Reconciling getting fired with successfully raising money for a new company (54:26) The failure to build a billion-dollar company (1:03:42) How to prioritize survival (1:06:33) The pivotal decision to leave San Francisco for Provo, Utah (1:08:11) The current state of Gumroad  (1:11:22) How Gumroad is structured to solve some of the classic business problems: equity, ownership, dividends (1:13:53) Incentivizing for the long-term (1:22:12) How Gumroad is helping other companies copy their model  (1:25:16) Lightning round You can find the transcript and references at ⁠⁠⁠https://www.ericriesshow.com/⁠⁠ — Production and marketing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://penname.co/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Eric may be an investor in the companies discussed.

Standard Self-improvement advice is usually beige, unhelpful and often just wrong. We dive into the topic of "You are the 5 people you spend most time with" and learn where it is wrong and dangerous to follow. Instead, we learn a toolkit to be ourselves wherever we are and build relationships that nourish us. Lessons: Where common advice falls short Signs of toxic relationships blocking you from your potential Signs of healthy relationships Using the Growth Mindset to control your influences and outcomes Seeking variety from your inputs The dangers of conforming and group-think This episode holds a core mental-model for building a Growth Mindset and how to seek inspiration around you. Avoid getting caught in group-think or relationships that create Fixed Mindset thinking and be more yourself. Sponsors: SleepyClub: Doctor-approved natural sleeping aid that improves sleep quality. Safe to take every day. 20% discount code 'GROWTH20' - SleepyClub.co.uk ShortForm: Summaries and guides for the world's best books and ideas. FREE trial and 20% off annual fee - ShortForm.com/Psychology Recommended Episodes: Social Pressure Personality Disorder - 05th May 2024 Be More Yourself in 2024 - 05th Jan 2024 16 Paradoxes of Life - 16th Jan 2024 Meet Sam Free Call - Schedule Link Growth Mindset pod: Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement. Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset) Mail - GrowthMindsetPodcast(at)gmail.com Insta - SamJam.zen Newsletter - Expansive Thinking Questions to reflect on What are my strengths? When do I feel like I am being myself? I am putting my energy directly into the thing I want to do or is it postponed for some reason? Is there a faster way to reach the lifestyle I want? Who are my idols? Why do I look up to them? Could I have better idols? Who are 5 cool but very different friends to me, what would they tell me to do? Chapters: 00:00 - What is a Growth Mindset? 00:20 - You are not the 5 people you spend time with 01:23 - How Skiing proves others don't affect you 04:08 - Don't be blocked from being yourself 04:40 - Best Friends Don't Need To Be Aspirational Figures 06:30 - Opposite can work 08:50 - Choose your inspiration 09:36 - Small encounters can have butterfly effects 10:53 - Prioritise healthy relationships 11:30 - Avoid being lost in generic groups/cliques 12:08 - Sahil Lavingia and GumRoad 13:53 - Build Variety in your relationships 14:53 - Questions to journal on (see above) 16:05 - Life tips Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 97: On this episode, I talk with Sahil Lavingia about his 2019 essay titled “Reflecting on My Failure to Build a Billion-Dollar Company.” Sahil is the founder & CEO of Gumroad, an e-commerce platform for creators. Gumroad does nearly $20m per year, is highly profitable, and has no full-time employees. In the essay, Sahil talks about leaving Pinterest as its second employee in 2011, to build his life's work…a company called Gumroad that would be worth billions of dollars, IPO one day an employ hundreds of people. But that's not what happened. In 2015, Sahil laid off 75% of Gumroad's staff to keep the company alive. Of course firing some of his best friends was heart-wrenching. But possibly just as difficult for Sahil was the death of his dream to build a venture-backed unicorn. The heart of this article & much of what you'll hear Sahil talk about during our conversation is the emotional journey post-layoffs & the decision to build a profitable “boring” lifestyle business. Reflecting on My Failure to Build a Billion-Dollar Company: https://sahillavingia.com/reflecting Send us an email and let us know what you think of the idea! foundersjournal@morningbrew.com #FoundersJournal #Startups #Entrepreneur Listen to Founder's Journal here: https://link.chtbl.com/OV4W93_W Watch Founder's Journal here: https://www.youtube.com/@FoundersJournal/  Subscribe to Morning Brew! Sign up for free today: https://bit.ly/morningbrewyt Follow The Brew! Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/morningbrew/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/MorningBrew Tik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@morningbrew Follow Alex! Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 88: Today, I'm highlighting a nearly $20m per year business that is run in a pretty unconventional way. This business has no meetings, no deadlines, and no full-time employees. The business is Gumroad, an e-commerce platform for creators, and to break it down I chat with Sahil Lavingia the company's founder & CEO. While the way Sahil runs Gumroad may be too unorthodox for how you run your company, I have no doubt that this episode is going to push you to think more critically & creatively about what it looks like to build a business in 2024. Gumroad's Website: https://gumroad.com/ Gumroad's Public Updates: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OY2PgZMR2cI&list=PL_DfN-mKCGNuswqERc6sIA8urYAKARc6s Sahil's Twitter: https://twitter.com/shl Send us an email and let us know what you think of the idea! foundersjournal@morningbrew.com #FoundersJournal #Startups #Entrepreneur Listen to Founder's Journal here: https://link.chtbl.com/OV4W93_W Watch Founder's Journal here: https://www.youtube.com/@FoundersJournal/  Subscribe to Morning Brew! Sign up for free today: https://bit.ly/morningbrewyt Follow The Brew! Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/morningbrew/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/MorningBrew Tik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@morningbrew Follow Alex! Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you're shopping for books this Black Friday, here are the 15 most impactful books I read before and during my SaaS founder journey. From entrepreneurship to marketing and customer interaction, you'll have a lot to put on your Black Friday shopping list.My own work is available for 50% off on Gumroad for a few days, too. Use the code BFF for Zero to Sold, The Embedded Entrepreneur, and Find your Following.And now, let's grow your library with the likes of Rob Walling, John Warrillow, Michele Hansen, and many more:This episode is sponsored by Acquire.comThe blog post: The podcast episode: The video: https://youtu.be/F9iIxqtvNUIYou'll find my weekly article on my blog: https://thebootstrappedfounder.comPodcast: https://thebootstrappedfounder.com/podcastNewsletter: https://thebootstrappedfounder.com/newsletterMy book Zero to Sold: https://zerotosold.com/My book The Embedded Entrepreneur: https://embeddedentrepreneur.com/My course Find Your Following: https://findyourfollowing.comHere are a few tools I use. Using my affiliate links will support my work at no additional cost to you.- Notion (which I use to organize, write, coordinate, and archive my podcast + newsletter): https://affiliate.notion.so/465mv1536drx- Riverside.fm (that's what I recorded this episode with): https://riverside.fm/?via=arvid- TweetHunter (for speedy scheduling and writing Tweets): http://tweethunter.io/?via=arvid- HypeFury (for massive Twitter analytics and scheduling): https://hypefury.com/?via=arvid60- AudioPen (for taking voice notes and getting amazing summaries): https://audiopen.ai/?aff=PXErZ- Descript (for word-based video editing, subtitles, and clips): https://www.descript.com/?lmref=3cf39Q- ConvertKit (for email lists, newsletters, even finding sponsors): https://convertkit.com?lmref=bN9CZw

About the show I believe that ChatGPT is the most important creative tool of the decade. I think it can help us write better, create art, efficiently ship products, build great businesses, make smart decisions, and even learn something about ourselves,. But it's still so early. Most of us don't even really know how to use ChatGPT. We have a feeling that it's powerful, interesting, and important—but we haven't figured out how to incorporate it into our lives. There are a few people, though, who are living in the future. They have the time and curiousity to use ChatGPT in their everyday lives, taking the opportunity to make the technology work for them. In this way, they light the way for everyone else.  That's what this interview series, How I Use ChatGPT, is all about. We go in-depth with the most interesting people in the world to learn concrete ways they are already using ChatGPT. It won't be theoretical—or limited to audio: we'll screen-share and see their actual prompts and responses, so you can see how ChatGPT helps them perform better at work and improve their lives—one conversation at a time.  About this episode My first guest is Sahil Lavingia, the co-founder and CEO of Gumroad, one of the largest platforms for creators to sell their work online. He shared how he uses ChatGPT for: Buying a building. He wants to buy a New York City hangout for Gumroad employees and customers, so he asked ChatGPT to research the history of real estate in NYC, suggest which neighborhoods might be best to target, generate questions for brokers, and even detail what the design of a particular property might look like. Writing tweets. Sahil is a prolific Twitter/X user. He often uses ChatGPT to help him flesh out an idea. He says, “I [start] with a tweet, which is like a thesis, and then I just say, ‘Add three to four paragraphs to make the point compelling—also suggest more examples.'” We explore his precise process for using ChatGPT to help him brainstorm short tweets and longer essays in this episode. Pressure-testing ideas. For Sahil, ChatGPT is like upgrading his peripheral vision. It lets him see around the corners, ask better questions of himself and other people, and avoid poor decisions. He told me, “I think a lot of people sort of delude themselves into thinking they have [good ideas]… I think that one of the most useful things about [ChatGPT] is it focuses your research on what actually matters.” It's the ultimate tool to help him think better. Also in this episode: how ChatGPT could have helped Sahil save $70 million, how he thinks it will improve the most-talented creatives, and why he thinks—in the age of AI—people have no excuse for not knowing the answer to something anymore. Timestamps: Intro 0:33 There's no more excuse for not knowing anymore 2:00 He doesn't spend as much time on bad ideas 2:50 How ChatGPT will make the top 1% of creative output better 6:15 How it turbocharges research 8:20 How he's using ChatGPT to buy a building 11:00 How he uses ChatGPT to pressure-test ideas 17:43 How he uses DALL-E to help with interior design 20:50 How ChatGPT could have saved him $70 million 26:00 How he uses ChatGPT in his decision-making 29:50 How he uses ChatGPT for writing 38:00

Sahil Lavingia is the CEO and founder of Gumroad, one of the biggest platforms online for selling digital assets. Gumroad has generated over $750,000,000 in revenue for creators since 2011. It's one of the best platforms to sell online courses, templates, content graphics and animations, etc. This episode is on how Sahil Lavingia built Gumroad to a company that's worth between $100 million and $500 million. This is also an episode on how you can start making money online by selling digital assets. Sahil Lavingia Twitter Grab the Content System For Entrepreneurs!

Sahil is the Founder & CEO of Gumroad, a direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform for online creators. He is also the Founder & CEO of Flexile, a company creating the infrastructure for operating businesses online with part-time people working remotely from around the world. Prior to starting Gumroad, Sahil was the second employee at Pinterest. He recently published a book, The Minimalist Entrepreneur, and started his own rolling fund, SHL Capital. Follow Sahil on Twitter @shl. [0:00] - Sahil's story, dropping out of college to join Pinterest [5:31] - Why Sahil was comfortable taking risks early in his career [11:57] - Breaking down Sahil's daily routines and habits [21:57] - Sahil's approach to operating Gumroad without any full-time employees [28:00] - How Sahil thinks AI will impact the way companies can operate [33:54] - The impact of rising interest rates on business strategies [37:23] - Sahil's experiences living in San Francisco, Provo, and Portland [42:50] - Differentiating digital versus physical cultures and social realities [46:46] - Why physical location is still so critical digital-first world [49:39] - Sahil's strategy for growing Flexile [54:05] - The future of equity issuance for modern businesses --- homeofjake.com

In this episode, Sabrina Halper sits down with Sahil Lavingia for an in-depth conversation that goes far and wide. They discuss: -his journey dropping out of USC to join Pinterest as the 2nd employee -founding and scaling Gumroad to $100M -his advice for others looking to build profitable products and companies -the current AI wave: which companies excite him, what he's been building, how the competitive ecosystem might play out -AGI and what our future society may look like -Balaji's Bitcoin bet -whether TikTok should be banned Please like & subscribe! Reach out to Shalper@hofcapital.com with any feedback, requests for guests, or if you're building something to bring the future closer.    Follow Sahil on Twitter or check out his website. Engage with HOF on Twitter or read our March to Utopia. Connect with Sabrina on Twitter. Please follow this show and download episodes to stay up to date on Tomorrow Talk's latest! We have an exciting month ahead.

Building a business is hard. Sahil Lavingia is Founder of Gumroad and he has seen his fair share of ups and downs to say the least. He has had to lay people off, experience rapid unexpected growth, and so much more. In this episode in front of an audience, he shares what truly matters to build a company, inflection points, and why is currently optimistic. Sahil is also an investor and the author of The Minimalist Entrepreneur. Excited for you to build and grow your Portfolio Career!As always, this episode with notes is available on my website.Connect with Sahil on TwitterConnect with David on TwitterSubscribe to David's Portfolio Career Substack

Karthik (KP) Puvvada is the Founder of the Build in Public podcast. He chats with ambitious startup founders, CEOs, and top Internet creators to unpack their stories, insights, and lessons. He:- Grew Twitter from 414 followers to 37,700+- Grew newsletter from 0 to 7100+ subscribers- Grew podcast to 1000s of listeners and landed interviews with iconic guests like Gary Vee, Sahil Lavingia, Alexis Ohanian, Kat Cole, etc.If you like our podcast, please don't forget to subscribe and support us on your favorite podcast players. We also would appreciate your feedback and rating to reach more people.We recently launched our new newsletter, Principles Friday, where I share one principle that can help you in your life or business, one thought-provoking question, and one call to action toward that principle. Please subscribe Here.It is Free and Short (2min).

Discussing weekly tech news & topics w/ experienced venture founders. No investors. @shl (Pinterest, Gumroad, Flexile) @julien (Breather, Practice) @kevingibbon (Shyp, Airhouse)

Sahil Lavingia has had an epic journey as an entrepreneur: he dropped out of college to become employee #2 at Pinterest and then went on to found Gumroad, one of the largest platforms for creators to sell their work and earn a living online. After the company failed to meet its VC-driven growth timeline and almost died, Sahil had to lay everyone off and build it back up into the resilient, streamlined, and fully distributed company it is today.Episode web page.—Sign up here to get upcoming essays + episodes emailed to you.Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)—Links & resources mentioned:• Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email• Sahil Lavingia: Gumroad, Twitter, personal site• Book: The Minimalist Entrepreneur• “Reflecting on My Failure to Build a Billion-Dollar Company”: essay + talk• Sahil's early stage investment fund—Related episodes:• #42 ARM: A mental model for fulfilling work—People & orgs:• Gumroad• USC• Patreon• BandCamp• Substack• Daniel Vassallo tweet about money he's made Gumroad• Paul Graham: “You've found market price when buyers complain but still pay.”—Books:• The Minimalist Entrepreneur• Essentialism• Only the Paranoid Survive—Other resources:• How Gumroad is run: No Meetings, No Deadlines, No Full-Time Employees• Video: Gumroad Q4 2022 board meeting - where pricing change was announced• “Reflecting on My Failure to Build a Billion-Dollar Company”: essay + MicroConf talk• What is a transformer model (AI)? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com

Today, Greg is joined by Sahil Lavingia, the founder of Gumroad. Sahil told himself he's going to start being totally honest in 2023 and he doesn't hold back in this conversation. ►► Want email updates when new and exclusive episodes come out? It's free to subscribe at http://trwih.com LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE:Sahil Lavingia: https://twitter.com/shlGreg Isenberg: https://twitter.com/gregisenbergProduction Team: https://www.bigoceanpodcasting.com/FIND US ON SOCIALTwitter: https://twitter.com/_trwihInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/_trwihTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_trwihWeb: https://trwih.comSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6aB0v6amo3a8hgTCjlTlvhApple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/where-it-happens/id1593424985SHOW NOTES:0:00 - Intro4:22 - Where Sahil's brainpower is going in 20239:18 - Robots replacing humans (yes or no)17:19 - The most valuable skillset25:17 - The first step to becoming more technical34:46 - How to get the life you really want39:47 - How to beat inertia44:14 - Clean up your information diet

Gumroad is a popular eCommerce platform that lets creators sell their physical and digital products, courses, and memberships directly to customers. But the platform's popularity has taken a dip in light of a recent, unexpected pricing structure change announced by founder Sahil Lavingia. From Sunday, 1 January 2023, all of its sellers — no matter […]

Sahil Lavingia founded Gumroad at the age of 19 and built it into a leading digital commerce platform. He is the author of The Minimalist Entrepreneur and an investor in early-stage startups.Steve and Sahil discuss:0:00 Sahil's upbringing and start as an entrepreneur9:35 Tech founder at 19 and VC investment from Kleiner-Perkins24:15 Backstory of Gumroad30:30 Crowdfunding Gumroad37:09 Experiments with OpenAI LLM, ChatGPT, and the promise of AIReferences:Sahil's web pagehttps://sahillavingia.com/Ask My Book: interrogate Sahil's book via LLMhttps://askmybook.com/

The year 2022 is coming to an end. It's been a wild ride, and here on The Unstoppable Podcast, we've been incredibly lucky to host so many discussions with truly fascinating people from every corner of the Web3 space.It's been tough to whittle it down to the highlights, but here's our roundup of the best conversations we've hosted this year:- Matt Gould: The growing importance of digital identity and how Web3 will impact this.- Maria Shen: Her five new frontiers for NFTs, how this space is evolving and what the future holds.- Sahil Lavingia at fweb3: The role of crypto as a financial asset, how it looks set to develop and whether it could outlast the USA.- Shaan Puri at the Milk Road Newsletter: Building powerful, global communities using technology and Web3.- Carra Wu at a16z: What crypto can learn from the city of Venice, how Web3 gaming looks set to evolve and how crypto can drive more economic stability.- Scott Kominers, Professor of Business Administration, Entrepreneurial Management Unit at Harvard Business School: What the future holds for decentralized identity and building a more global digital infrastructure.- Adam Levy, host of the Mint Podcast and Co-Founder at Bello: NFTs, collectibles and building successful and enduring Web3 communities. You can follow Josh on Twitter and learn more about Unstoppable Domains and our work here.Don't forget to rate, download, and subscribe to the podcast so you won't miss an episode and we can keep producing awesome content for you. #crypto #blockchain #domains #web3.0 #decentralized

Yesterday, the creator economy learned that Gumroad, a platform where creators have been building their businesses by selling their services and products, increased their prices significantly. That caused a lot of backlash in the community, with people threatening to switch to other platforms and criticizing how the price hike was communicated. It's been an intense topic of community discussion.Today, I am talking to Sahil, the CEO of Gumroad, about what prompted this change, what happened to cause such a stir, and where Gumroad is heading in the future. Here's Sahil.You can find this conversation on YouTube.

¿Sueñas con tener tu propio negocio pero no tienes nada claro como conseguir la financiación para iniciarlo?¿Y si no necesitaras capital?En este episodio analizo el libro El Emprendedor Minimalista (The Minimalist Entrepreneur, 2021), de Sahil Lavingia.En esta análisis te describo cómo identificar el negocio que debes crear, inspirándote en tus propias comunidades para configurar, testar y lanzar tu negocio exitoso. Aquí puedes conseguir este libro:AQUÍ TIENES EL LIBRO "The Minimalist Entrepreneur": https://geni.us/emprendedorminimalista En esta página encuentras las notas del episodio y todos los enlaces mencionados:https://librosparaemprendedores.net/271 ¿Quieres saber cómo aumentar tu velocidad de lectura? Mírate este vídeo y quizás hasta la dupliques en sólo 20 minutos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0VqCZlLuEc¿Cómo conseguir levantarse temprano? 10 consejos... también apps útiles, para conseguirlo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJPmqy6Qi1c En Youtube y en Instagram estamos publicando también contenido exclusivo. Suscríbete ahora:Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/c/LibrosparaemprendedoresNetInstagram: https://instagram.com/librosparaemprendedores Esta es nuestra página oficial de Facebook: http://librosparaemprendedores.net/facebook Además, recuerda que puedes suscribirte al podcast en:- Nuestra página: http://librosparaemprendedores.net/feed/podcast- iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/mx/podcast/libros-para-emprendedores/id1076142249?l=es- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0qXuVDCYF8HvkEynJwHULb- iVoox: http://www.ivoox.com/ajx-suscribirse_jh_266011_1.html- Spreaker: http://www.spreaker.com/user/8567017/episodes/feed- Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=81214 y seguirnos en Twitter ( https://twitter.com/EmprendeLibros ) y en Facebook ( https://www.facebook.com/EmprendeLibros/ ). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

¿Sueñas con tener tu propio negocio pero no tienes nada claro como conseguir la financiación para iniciarlo?¿Y si no necesitaras capital?En este episodio analizo el libro El Emprendedor Minimalista (The Minimalist Entrepreneur, 2021), de Sahil Lavingia.En esta análisis te describo cómo identificar el negocio que debes crear, inspirándote en tus propias comunidades para configurar, testar y lanzar tu negocio exitoso. Aquí puedes conseguir este libro:AQUÍ TIENES EL LIBRO "The Minimalist Entrepreneur": https://geni.us/emprendedorminimalista En esta página encuentras las notas del episodio y todos los enlaces mencionados:https://librosparaemprendedores.net/271 ¿Quieres saber cómo aumentar tu velocidad de lectura? Mírate este vídeo y quizás hasta la dupliques en sólo 20 minutos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0VqCZlLuEc¿Cómo conseguir levantarse temprano? 10 consejos... también apps útiles, para conseguirlo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJPmqy6Qi1c En Youtube y en Instagram estamos publicando también contenido exclusivo. Suscríbete ahora:Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/c/LibrosparaemprendedoresNetInstagram: https://instagram.com/librosparaemprendedores Esta es nuestra página oficial de Facebook: http://librosparaemprendedores.net/facebook Además, recuerda que puedes suscribirte al podcast en:- Nuestra página: http://librosparaemprendedores.net/feed/podcast- iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/mx/podcast/libros-para-emprendedores/id1076142249?l=es- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0qXuVDCYF8HvkEynJwHULb- iVoox: http://www.ivoox.com/ajx-suscribirse_jh_266011_1.html- Spreaker: http://www.spreaker.com/user/8567017/episodes/feed- Stitcher: http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=81214 y seguirnos en Twitter ( https://twitter.com/EmprendeLibros ) y en Facebook ( https://www.facebook.com/EmprendeLibros/ ). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

(Recorded November 2021) This week, Alexis gets non-technical with Sahil Lavingia, the Founder and CEO of Gumroad. They talk about the first principles of Hamilton, Starbucks' secret menu, an unhinged return of the Vibram Five Finger, and (almost!!) joining the Church of Scientology.You can find Sahil on Twitter at twitter.com/shl and Alexis at twitter.com/yayalexisgay or instagram.com/yayalexisgay and twitter.com/NonTechnicalPod. You can also sign up for Alexis' email list at https://bit.ly/hellofromalexis to stay tuned for upcoming stand-up shows and other ~exciting~ announcements!

Gumroad has been around 11 years and more, and people have made tens of thousands of dollars selling digital products on Gumroad! But do you know, how Gumroad was founded?In this episode, the founder and CEO of Gumroad, Sahil Lavingia who also invested in Clubhouse, Republic, and more, joined me to talk about his origin story and his road to creating Gumroad!Sahil's origin story is fascinating, he was young and wanted to buy some Xbox games, so he started learning how to build websites to make money on the side. He then fell in love with building sites and apps, and eventually landed as the number 2 employee on Pinterest.Like every great entrepreneur and inventor, Sahil built Gumroad because he had a problem selling his digital goods and services online, he saw the pain that the world need to be solved, so he took it upon himself and started Gumroad in  hope to help others to help their product online! And then, the rest is history!Listen to this episode and find out more about Sahil!Visit Notepd.com to read more idea lists, or sign up and create your own idea list!My new book Skip The Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever you get your new book!Join You Should Run For President 2.0 Facebook Group, and we discuss why should run for president.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please subscribe to “The James Altucher Show” and rate and review wherever you get your podcasts:Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook

Gumroad has been around 11 years and more, and people have made tens of thousands of dollars selling digital products on Gumroad! But do you know, how Gumroad was founded?In this episode, the founder and CEO of Gumroad, Sahil Lavingia who also invested in Clubhouse, Republic, and more, joined me to talk about his origin story and his road to creating Gumroad!Sahil's origin story is fascinating, he was young and wanted to buy some Xbox games, so he started learning how to build websites to make money on the side. He then fell in love with building sites and apps, and eventually landed as the number 2 employee on Pinterest.Like every great entrepreneur and inventor, Sahil built Gumroad because he had a problem selling his digital goods and services online, he saw the pain that the world need to be solved, so he took it upon himself and started Gumroad in  hope to help others to help their product online! And then, the rest is history!Listen to this episode and find out more about Sahil!Visit Notepd.com to read more idea lists, or sign up and create your own idea list!My new book Skip The Line is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever you get your new book!Join You Should Run For President 2.0 Facebook Group, and we discuss why should run for president.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" and rate and review wherever you get your podcasts:Apple PodcastsStitcheriHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on Social Media:YouTubeTwitterFacebook ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn

We are often told we are the product of the 5 people we spend the most time with. This episode explores the cases where this isn't true and what we can learn from examining the relationships we have. We learn that actually, the most significant effect is from those that prevent us from being ourselves. Otherwise, we are free to choose the qualities we are inspired by regardless of how much time we spend with people. Questions to reflect on What are my strengths? When do I feel like I am being myself?I am putting my energy directly into the thing I want to do or is it postponed for some reason?Is there a faster way to reach the lifestyle I want?Who are my idols? Why do I look up to them? Could I have better idols?Who are 5 cool but very different friends to me, what would they tell me to do? Connect with Sam: Join the conversation on the social podcast app - PodvineSam's newsletter on creativity and entrepreneurship - Explosive Thinking Sam's podcast on books - Wiser Than Yesterday Support the Show - Patreon  If you enjoyed the podcast please subscribe and rate it. And of course, share with your friends! Timestamps 00:00 - What is a growth mindset00:20 - You are not the 5 people you spend time with01:00 - Be yourself01:23 - The skier parable04:08 - Don't be blocked from being yourself04:40 - Best friends06:30 - Opposite can work08:50 - Choose your inspiration09:36 - Small encounters can have butterfly effects10:53 - Prioritise healthy relationships11:30 - Avoid being generic groups/cliques12:08 - Sahil Lavingia and GumRoad13:53 - Variety is the spice of life14:53 - Questions to journal on (see above)16:05 - Life tips Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/growth-mindset-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Follow Sahil on Twitter: https://twitter.com/shl Check out Gumroad: https://gumroad.com/ Follow Justin on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mijustin Check out Transistor.fm: https://transistor.fm/

What do you really need to start and grow a business? Today's marketplace has lowered the barrier to entry for entrepreneurship. Given the tools available, the average person can start a profitable, scalable business with way less capital — and less experience — than ever before. Today's Must-Read explains how. The Minimalist Entrepreneur is a […] The post MBA2048 Must Read: The Minimalist Entrepreneur by Sahil Lavingia appeared first on The $100 MBA.

What do you really need to start and grow a business? Today's marketplace has lowered the barrier to entry for entrepreneurship. Given the tools available, the average person can start a profitable, scalable business with way less capital — and less experience — than ever before. Today's Must-Read explains how. The Minimalist Entrepreneur is a […] The post MBA2048 Must Read: The Minimalist Entrepreneur by Sahil Lavingia appeared first on The $100 MBA.

In this episode of The Unstoppable Podcast, we're talking to Sahil Lavingia, Founder and CEO of Gumroad and Creator of fweb3. Sahil has a ton of experience building in the Web2 world and is now applying his talents to Web3 and the world of dApps.We talk about the impact of Web3 on the internet and the world, and whether technologies like AI and VR can generate the same amount of hype and excitement as crypto and NFTs. Sahil talks about investing in crypto and how he is able to take a step back from momentary price fluctuations and look at the bigger picture.Sahil shares his thoughts on crypto as a financial asset and how it could gain momentum in the coming years. We talk about the power of NFTs to store and transfer value digitally and how they can be used to create scarcity online. We also talk about communities, and how artists can use NFTs to build closer relationships with their fans.We talk about Gumroad and Sahil's experiences building it, along with the crypto projects he is involved in. We finish off by discussing the four types of NFT utility and what the future holds for the space as a whole.--You can follow Josh on Twitter, follow our guest Sahil Lavingia on Twitter and LinkedIn, and learn more about Unstoppable Domains and our work here.--Don't forget to rate, download, and subscribe to the podcast so you won't miss an episode and we can keep producing awesome content for you.

Sahil Lavingia is the founder of Gumroad, the platform that allows creators to sell products online. The beating heart of the creator economy. You'll likely have heard Sahil's story about his failure to build a billion dollar company with an article that went viral, but let me summarise for those that haven't.Sahil founded Gumroad in 2011, aiming to build the next unicorn, leaving Pinterest where he was employee #2. He raised $1.1m from angels, then $7m more in 2012. Things started growing, then they didn't. Sahil laid off 75% of the company to keep the product alive, moved to Provo, Utah to figure where to take Gumroad from that point. Almost a decade later Gumroad is growing quicker than ever, making millions in revenue and helping creators make a living online.Sahil has just launched his book, The Minimalist Entrepreneur, where he shares a decade of learnings on how to build a profitable, sustainable business and how entrepreneurs can do more with less to make more impact on the world.

Sahil Lavingia is a founder, investor, and author. He is founder & CEO of Gumroad which exists to help every creative earn a living selling the stuff they make directly to their audience. He used the new equity crowdfunding rules in 2021 for Gumroad to be the first ever company to raise $5m from the crowd. He also founded SHL Capital, which invests more than $15 million a year in early-stage startups. Previously, he was Pinterest employee No. 2. In his spare time he wrote a book, “The Minimalist Entrepreneur: How Great Founders Do More with Less.”

Sahil Lavingia discusses why and how he runs Gumroad with no full time employees, no meetings, no deadlines and no company perks. NB, This was a talk that polarized opinions --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/business-of-software/message

Sahil's Twitter: @shlSahil's latest book 'The Minimalist Entrepreneur' on Amazon

Sahil Lavingia knows a thing or two about writing, building, and productizing yourself.He's the CEO of Gumroad, a company that helps creators earn a living doing things they love. He's also the author of The Minimalist Entrepreneur, a playbook for starting, building, and growing a sustainable, profitable business that you actually enjoy running.And in this conversation, Ship 30 for 30 Captains Dickie Bush and Nicolas Cole will sit down to discuss: Using writing to validate product demand What the best writers and entrepreneurs have in common How to use specificity to build something valuable How you can apply a 30-day challenge model to writing and entrepreneurship to accelerate your feedback loops

We're doing a Book Give Away! We'll be sending copies of 'The Minimalist Entrepreneur' to folks interested in building a profitable internet business. Just follow us on Twitter or  Instagram & tell us about what you want to building using the framework laid out in The Minimalist Entrepreneur book. On the episode, we host Sahil Lavingia, Founder of Gumroad and the author of The Minimalist Entrepreneur. We talk to him about the roller-coaster ride of building Gumroad to a profitable internet business with $10 m in revenue and $1m in profit, and some concepts from the book. Timeline:(00:00) - An Introduction to Sahil & Gumroad's journey(02:52) - Why the name 'The Minimalist Entrepreneur' and the intended audience (05:34) - Differences between a VC backed startup and a small profitable internet business (14:09) - Sahil's journey of coming out of the Silicon Valley/Unicorn bubble (20:55) - Leveraging Communities to discover problems (28:55) - Framework to identify ideas within a community(35:06) - Starting with Manual Valuable Process even before building a product (40:45) - How to start a business without worrying about all the skills you need(47:52) - Sahil's 20 Yr plan to becoming a Sci-Fi Writer(53:23) - Gumroad's recent Crowdfunding round of $5m and how is it different from VC (58:51) - Sahil's Experience of being an Angel Investor(01:03:44) - Sahil's relationship with Money

In this podcast, we cover - The art & science of designing for profitability Insights on scaling yourself through words Lessons in chasing personal passions for professional success This is Sahil - "It was 2011, and I was on top of the world. I was a 19-year-old solo founder with millions in the bank. At first, everything was great. We grew the team. We stayed focused on our product. Monthly revenues were climbing. But after four years, there was just one problem: our numbers weren't doubling fast enough to satisfy the venture capitalists who had backed us in the first place. We tried everything, but eventually I had to lay off three-quarters of the staff - including many good friends. I couldn't stay in San Francisco, so I moved to Provo, Utah and kept Gumroad afloat on my own while I figured out what to do next. I went back to writing and painting, and that reminded me why I had built the business in the first place. I loved to create! When our lead investor offered to sell ownership back to Gumroad for $1, the future came into focus. I could start again and grow the kind of meaningful business focused on creators that we always should have been. In February 2019, I published a Medium essay, “Reflecting on My Failure to Build a Billion-Dollar Company” that struck a chord with millions of entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs who, deep down, would much rather build a sustainable business like Gumroad than chase a VC-backed unicorn. I wrote The Minimalist Entrepreneur and created the course to help anyone design, build, and successfully grow their own right sized business. Now, let's get to it!"

Get out your notebook on this fun and enlightening conversation with Sahil Lavingia on his new book, The Minimalist Entrepreneur. He is a painter, investor ($10 million a year into early-stage startups), and the Founder and CEO of Gumroad. We talk shop on everything from getting started as an entrepreneur, marketing, sales, mindset, gurus, investing, crypto, futurism, and the macro trends to watch. https://sahillavingia.com/ Show notes at https://jeffdolan.com/podcast --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/jeffdolan/message

We sat down with Sahil Lavingia to talk about his new book the Minimalist Entrepreneur. During our convo, we chat about operating Gumroad, equity crowdfunding, tokenization applications and more.0:00 - 1:12 Intro 1:12 - 11:12 Failure to build a $1B business 11:12 - 17:22 What Drives Sahil? 17:22 - 20:59 Sahil on Feeling Fear 20:59 - 25:20 No Meetings, No Deadlines, No FTE's 25:20 - 35:50 Crowdfunding 35:50 - 48:14 Sahil's Hopes for the Future 48:14 - 53:37 Gumroad Equity 53:37 - 58:38 The Benefits of a Community of Investors 58:38 - 1:00:44 Outro Follow Sahil: https://twitter.com/shl Purchase the Minimalist Entrepeneur: https://www.minimalistentrepreneur.co... Follow Us: website: https://stonks.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/Stonks_dot_com

Sometimes, we all feel like failures. Maybe we failed our loved ones. Maybe we failed at work. Or maybe, as in Sahil's case, we failed to build a billion-dollar company and ended up with a measly $100M company instead. In this reading, Sahil feels your feelings, he breathes your breaths, and he dreams your dreams. Sit back, relax, and let the business wash over you. Presented in partnership with Racket. Create, share and discover audio stories. Told by you, told by anyone. Download the app at racket.com/workweek

“Using Media to Build an Investor Brand and an LP Base” with Sahil Lavingia, Founder of GumroadSahil and Jeremy discuss how Sahil is using social media to grow and raise funds and the positive aspects he has implemented in that growth. For more about Sahil Lavingia click here.

This week, Alexis gets non-technical with Sahil Lavingia, the Founder and CEO of Gumroad. They talk about the first principles of Hamilton, Starbucks' secret menu, an unhinged return of the Vibram Five Finger, and (almost!!) joining the Church of Scientology.You can find Sahil on Twitter at twitter.com/shl and Alexis at twitter.com/yayalexisgay or instagram.com/yayalexisgay and twitter.com/NonTechnicalPod.This episode is sponsored by Betts Recruiting. If you're looking for your next big opportunity, you can join the Betts network and get connected with the world's most innovative companies hiring go-to-market professionals like you. Learn more about hiring top talent or finding your next role at bettsrecruiting.com/nontechnical.

My guest today is Sahil Lavingia, author of The Minimalist Entrepreneur.Sahil Lavingia is the founder of Gumroad and an angel investor. Before that, he was employee #2 at Pinterest.  In this episode,  Sahil shares advice on building a successful business, why you want to be a creator before becoming an entrepreneur, lessons learned from Naval Ravikant, and much more.TIMESTAMPS:[00:20] - What is a minimalist entrepreneur?[08:57] - How Sahil built his company Gumroad[12:00] - Be a creator first then an entrepreneur second[18:00] - Why community is vital for building successful businesses[33:20] - The advantages of building-in-public[45:20] - The risks of building-in-public[50:50] - Workplace culture & the future of work[1:03:00] - Lessons Sahil learned from Naval Ravikant[1:08:00] - Two books that had a huge impact on Sahil's lifeResources:Twitter: @shlWebsite: minimalistentrepreneur.com***If you enjoyed this podcast, make sure to subscribe.Every week I send out a free newsletter with actionable advice from amazing books. Join 9,800+ readers here.Connect with Alex & Books:Twitter: @alexandbooks_Instagram: @alexandbooks_YouTube: Alex and Books

In this episode, we talk with Gumroad Founder & CEO Sahil Lavingia.  This is the second in a series of conversations we'll be having with Sahil on the podcast. Our goal is to give you a window into his world and thinking inside and outside Gumroad. This recording was taped in July 2021, and represents product updates at that time. We talked about Sahil's rolling fund and scouts, Gumroad affiliate features, Gumroad's simplified pricing, and Stripe payouts. Links: Gumroad: https://gumroad.com Sahil's Twitter:  https://twitter.com/shlSahil's website: https://sahillavingia.comSahil's new book: https://www.minimalistentrepreneur.com/preorder

In this episode of Masters of Community, we speak with Sahil Lavingia, Venture Capitalist at shl.vc and Cofounder and CEO at Gumroad. Gumroad exists to help every creative earn a living selling the products they make directly to their audience. Previously, he was the second employee at Pinterest and worked on Turntable's mobile apps. Crowdfunding has become a great, viable option for entrepreneurs in the US ever since the SEC raised the crowdfunding limit to five million dollars. In this episode, Sahil talks about why crowdfunding is a great direction to take for businesses looking for investment. He also explains the origins of Gumroad, how his personal boundaries helped him make Gumroad a lean and efficient business, and how he raised a five million dollar crowdfunding round for the company. This episode explains how a VC's approach to doing business is different from entrepreneurs who build those businesses. Sahil also gives an overview of why minimalist entrepreneurship is important and how entrepreneurs can explore this path. Who is this episode for? Entrepreneurs, VCs, and those looking for guidance on crowdfunding and a minimalist approach to entrepreneurship. Three key takeaways: 1. Why is Minimalist Entrepreneurship Important?: Entrepreneurs have to be introspective and find more fulfilling goals for themselves - a middle ground of where they can be happy with their progress - because not all businesses can turn into one-billion-dollar companies. In this episode (and his book), Sahil explores how entrepreneurship is a way of doing any kind of business and not just a singular career path. 2. A More Thoughtful Approach to Entrepreneurship: Start with a singular focus on profitability and make your company sustainable. Make the community a pillar of your business. First, define what kind of business you don't want to build and use that to define the type of business you want to run. Sahil explores this idea further in this episode and his book. 3. The Difference Between the Approach By VCs and Entrepreneurs: Entrepreneurs do a single business for multiple years/decades. VCs don't care for entrepreneurs being able to run a business for ten to twenty years. Their major concerns are metrics that show how efficiently a company they invested in is being run. VCs have a different risk profile because they manage multiple businesses in a single year, and if one fails, they have other businesses to concentrate their efforts. Notable Quotes: 1. “What I love about crowdfunding is that it basically takes two of those cohorts and sort of those two constituencies and merges them together. Creators can be customers. They can also be investors in the company and they can of course work for the company too.” 2. “Profitability means sustainability, which is kind of like having your own book versus venture capital, which often feels like you're treading water, you're looking at your burn rate and you're like, something needs to change here. I'm going to eventually run out of oxygen. And so that's like the first thing is like, I think a lot of people need to think about building businesses where there's revenue coming in, basically from day zero.” Answers to rapid-fire questions: 1. What's the weirdest community you've ever been a part of? His oil painting class with retirees. 2. One tweet-sized piece of deathbed advice for the rest of the world? Build stuff and do it in public because building stuff is for other people and doing it in public is the best way to make friends. Answers to audience questions: 1. What is the strongest piece of advice you have for community builders when facing perceived failures? Be open and transparent with everybody. When Sahil laid off fifteen out of twenty people at Gumroad, his team was receptive because they knew of his difficulties in raising funds for over three months. Sahil also maintains the same level of transparency about company culture with anyone who joins Gumroad as an employee. 2. What are some key differences you see between being an entrepreneur and a freelancer? Entrepreneurs are really associated with the thing that they're building. The beauty of freelancing is that you have a low-ego kind of approach to building stuff. 3. What was your first experience in a virtual community? In Singapore, Sahil learned iOS development at iTunes University.

In this episode, we talk with an entrepreneur familiar to our audience and community:  Gumroad Founder & CEO, Sahil Lavingia. We talk about scaling the Gumroad team, how we work, and product releases to expect in Q3 and Q4 of this year. We'll be checking in with Sahil every quarter (or so), giving you a window into his world and thinking on a variety of topics, in addition to periodic updates on Gumroad. Links: Gumroad: https://gumroad.com Sahil's Twitter:  https://twitter.com/shl

My guest today is Sahil Lavingia, and this is an incredibly powerful, honest & inspiring episode. Sahil is today the founder & CEO of Gumroad, a platform that helps creators get paid for the work they do. What is significantly more impressive though is Sahil's journey to where he is today. Sahil was in many ways a prodigy as a teenager, working on apps & websites - and making $100k by age 15. He joined the University of Southern California, only to drop out after a semester to join the then fledgling platform Pinterest to build their iOS app as employee #2. Within a year, he left Pinterest - before his shares vested - to found the company that he hoped would be his magnum opus, what he announced on Twitter as a ‘billion dollar company idea' before he launched it. This was Gumroad - and for a while he seemed to be a man who, at age 19, could do no wrong. Until things started to go wrong. Growth began to stall. Sahil and his team put their soul into the business - and they couldn't do what it took to hit the targets they need to hit to make it a venture-scaleable business. In what was a wrenching time, he had to lay off three fourths of his company - and find his own path forward. This is Sahil's story - about how things don't always grow, and how sometimes that's ok - but only if you make your peace with it.KEY HIGHLIGHTSSahil's early work in design and development as a teenager that led him to make his first $100,000 and become financially independent.The path that led Sahil to be described as the most interesting teenager in Silicon Valley and the #2 employee at Pinterest, less than two years after he started learning to code. Why Sahil left Pinterest less than a year after joining, before his stocks vested  and what about Gumroad inspired him to keep working on it.Why Sahil decided to go deep on Gumroad rather than seek out his next new project. How writing and painting helped him cultivate the patience that let him do this.Sahil's cold email strategy of acquiring his first few customers – and why it was effective for him.Why Sahil was obsessed with becoming a billionaire from early on.How Sahil coped with the fact that Gumroad would never become a venture-bankable billion dollar company.How Sahil thought about ‘front loading his retirement' why ‘diversifying his identity' was crucial.What inspired Sahil to write the Medium piece about his journey.The reframing of impact that was crucial to Sahil's coping with the change in circumstances for his business.The difference in lifestyle in Provo, Utah, compared to San Francisco.Check out the full transcript and show notes here:https://howthingsgrow.co/how-things-dont-grow-reflections-on-not-being-a-billionaire-with-sahil-lavingiaceo-at-gumroad/**Get more goodies here:http://MobileUserAcquisitionShow.comhttp://RocketShipHQ.comhttp://RocketShipHQ.com/blog

Sahil is really sharp and definitely has his head on straight. He has a lot of wisdom to share here about painting, life, and startups.